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Metalink's Breakthrough HD-IPTV Technology on DisplayBy Erik Linask Associate Editor With the impending convergence of electronics, communications, and networking, the need for new broadband technologies continues to grow. And as communications and entertainment technology advances, the tech-savvy consumer requires delivery methods to complement new hardware and services, which includes higher capacity and quality broadband solutions that will enable complete interconnection of multimedia devices throughout the home and office — especially in a wireless environment.
Metalink Ltd., driven by the need for advanced WLAN capabilities — ABI Research estimates some 150 million 802.11n chipset will be sold in 2008 — developed its WLANPlus product family. The next-generation chipset is designed to meet the expected demand for high-throughput, rich-content, quality-critical application delivery. It will demonstrate the capabilities of its latest innovation next week at the The World Broadband Forum in Hong Kong. The technology, which Metalink unveiled earlier this year at The National Show in Atlanta, enables high definition TV delivery over wireless connections, but at wireline quality. Its advanced WLAN technology is designed to enable high-throughput critical applications. It also presents a notable boost in both throughput and range from both 802.11a and g standards.
Metalink’s WLANPlus family consists of the MtW8170 baseband device and the MtW8150 radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC). The combination of the two enables delivery of multiple HDTV streams to any location within a radius of 100 feet with no decline in QoS. Metalink says the product, which incorporates real Multiple-In Multiple-Out (real MIMO) technology, will double the effective throughput of other solutions. In addition to enabling higher throughput and higher speeds, Metalink’s technology also supports 802.11i security features and the 802.11e QoS standard, both necessary to effectively deploy for such high-priority voice and video services.
The benefit of WLANPlus is in its focus on the growing need for wireless A/V streaming and high-speed data transfer at ever increasing speeds and higher quality. The demonstration is expected to produce breakthrough data rates in a true indoor environment, which will ensure WLANPlus is a viable candidate for products and services requiring guaranteed performance and bandwidth capabilities — while still supporting interoperability with legacy WiFi (News - Alert) technology.
The solution provides an optimal high-throughput wireless interface for various consumer electronics products such as residential gateways, DTV, HDTV, set top boxes, media adaptors and DVRs.
“The number of IPTV (News - Alert) subscribers will triple from 2006 to 2008, reaching nearly 17 million. In cases where IPTV reaches a residential gateway that is not near the television set at home, home network LAN solutions are needed,” said Mike Arden, principal analyst at ABI Research. “The use of MIMO solves the problem of reliably delivering video across the home, which is why it is so fundamental to 802.11n.”
Because of its innovations in broadband technology — including WLANPlus — Metalink has been named one of the three finalists for the award for “"Enabling Silicon and Component-Level Technologies,” which will also be announced at the event.
Erik Linask is Associate Editor of INTERNET TELEPHONY. Most recently, he was Managing Editor at Global Custodian, an international securities services publication. To see more of his articles, please visit Erik Linask’s columnist page.
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